Fear Not! or Comfort for When You Think your Plants are Dead

We made it! Finally we can be outside without a coat!  You start poking around in the garden, anxious to see some signs of life.  But, you can’t find anything but perennial Geraniums and start thinking, “where are the plants?”  This year, the snow melted off a bit early and the winter was bitterly cold.  I anticipate receiving several phone calls from people with concerns that their plants are dead or dying. 

Fear not!  While you may see some tiny buds poking out of the ground now, many of our common landscape plants take longer to emerge from the ground.  In fact, many of our native prairie plants are ‘warm season’ plants that won’t appear until late May.  As a general rule, things that bloom in late summer emerge from the ground later in spring.  Plants like Perovskia (Russian Sage) and Hibiscus are notorious for confounding their owners with their late appearance.  Even some early blooming plants like Amelanchier (Serviceberry) or Cercis (Redbud) may not leaf out until July following a rough winter.  Another frightful sight is the winter burn suddenly appearing in evergreens.  The new growth will hide it shortly, or it can be removed with some thoughtful and judicious pruning

So, what do I say to the frantic caller?  “Fear not!”  Get some pansies or violets to fill the void, and let’s talk again in mid June. . .

 

Top Ten Reasons for Fall Projects

In today’s economy, saving money and wise investing makes sense.  That’s exactly why that landscape project you put off all summer should start this fall!  Fall projects can save you time and money.  We’ve come up with the top ten reasons to do just that:

1. Timing – Spring is incredibly busy for landscape companies.  If you wait until spring, you’re likely to wait over 30 days longer to break ground on your project than you would in fall.
2. Weather – Spring is wet!  Projects face many rain delays and often cost more due to the extra clean up and water management required in spring.
3. Spring Thaw – Who wouldn’t want the snow to melt, revealing a new landscape ready to enjoy, instead of the same old mess you never got around to completing last year!
4. Material & Fuel Prices - Manufacturer and distributors re-set prices and diesel fuel surcharges each spring.  Buy now and you won’t pay the 2010 mark up on materials or a fuel surcharge!
5. Close Outs – We order extra materials for every job.  By the end of the year, we have many discounted materials leftover.  For smaller projects, we may be able to provide all the materials from our storage yard at discounted prices.
6. Access Repair – At the end of each project, we have lawn areas to repair.  The best time of the year for seeding lawns is in the fall.  Let nature do the work for you; areas that are seeded  in the fall will establish faster and thicker.
7. Plant Prices – Did you know Avant Gardening has its own nursery?  Our designers require a large plant pallet to work from.  For this reason, we always purchase more plants than we need.  We are currently offering a 25% discount on our in-stock plants.
8. Planting – Plants installed in fall will demand less time from your busy schedule.  They are less stressed by temperature, and so require less water and establish better root structure more quickly.  In fall, plants work on their roots not their shoots!
9. Bulbs – Fall is the only time to plant spring bulbs!  Don’t wait until spring to wish you had planted bulbs.
10. Curb appeal – be ready for the home market upswing.  Get a front yard makeover now and be ready for spring.